The ongoing Lok Sabha elections have been the talk of the town since the poll dates were announced. All of us have been glued to our TV sets, Radio and mobile phones for latest poll updates, speeches of our favourite candidates, discussions and analyses on various aspects of the ongoing elections; however little do we know about how elections took place in 1960s or 70s or 80s, especially the youngsters who were not around then. Many of us have not heard the speeches of then leaders like Morarji Desai, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, VP Singh, PV Narsimha Rao, Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi and other leaders from that time. Many of us haven’t seen how elections were analysed on TV then, how reporters covered elections from ground on Doordarshan then.
So now that the results are just round the corner, everyone’s interest in elections has peaked. What could have been a better time and opportunity than this to give you a glimpse of how elections took place and how they were covered by Doordarshan in 60s, 70s, 80s and 90s!
To give you access to these old treasure, lately Prasar Bharati has been digitising and uploading these old content on its Doordarshan Archives YouTube page.
Here’s a quick list of the few old gems from the treasure trove that awaits you on the YouTube page of Doordarshan Archives.
Jawahar Lal Nehru’s Broadcast to the Nation ahead of 1951 General Elections
This is Audio of Pandit Nehru’s Broadcast to the Nation ahead of 1951 General Elections, wherein he talks about the importance of elections, voting and also elaborates upon the huge arrangements made for the first general elections of the country.
Jawaharlal Nehru’s interview with Arnold Michaelis – 1958
This is Jawaharlal Nehru’s first interview with renowned American Interviewer Arnold Michaelis in 1958. Pandit Nehru talks about religion, meaning and purpose of life, his retirement plans and other issues.
Jawaharlal Nehru’s last TV Interview – May 1964
This is Jawaharlal Nehru’s last significant interview to renowned American Interviewer Arnold Michaelis before his death. Pandit Nehru talks about Partition, Muslims in India, Plebiscite in Kashmir, Jinnah, Muslim league, Pakistan, China and other issues.
1977 Elections – Indira Gandhi on Emergency
Addressing a rally in Madurai for 1977 general elections, Indira Gandhi explains why she imposed Emergency. And also talks about Democracy, Dictatorship and Fascism.
Doordarshan during Emergency – Sanjay Gandhi in Rajasthan
Video footage of Sanjay Gandhi addressing emergency era Congress rally in Bikaner, Rajasthan in 1976.
Doordarshan during Emergency – Sanjay Gandhi in UP
Video footage of Sanjay Gandhi addressing Emergency era Congress rally in Lucknow and Bareilly in 1976.
1977 General Elections – Morarji Desai talks about the atrocities during Emergency
Audio of then PM Morarji Desai addressing a rally in Nowgaon for 1977 General Elections, wherein he talks about the excesses during emergency.
1977 General Elections – Janata Party victory rally in Delhi
1977 General Elections victory rally of Janata Party at Ramleela Maidan in New Delhi. This video footage also includes speeches of Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Prof. Vijay Kumar Malhotra & Syed Imam Bukhari.
1984 General Election Broadcast by PV Narsimha Rao
In the aftermath of Indira Gandhi’s assassination, in this video footage, PV Narsimha Rao delivers Congress’s election broadcast to the nation.
1984 General Election Broadcast by Atal Bihari Vajpayee
In this video footage, Atal Bihari Vajpayee delivers BJP’s election broadcast to the nation for 1984 general elections.
1984 General Election Broadcast by Chaudhary Charan Singh
In this video footage, Chaudhary Charan Singh delivers Lok Dal’s election broadcast to the nation for 1984 general elections.
1988 Allahabad Lok Sabha Bypoll Result discussion on Doordarshan
Prannoy Roy, Vinod Dua, Chandan Mitra and Shekhar Gupta discuss the 1988 Allahabad Lok Sabha bypoll result on Doordarshan.
1989 general elections – Discussion on Doordarshan
Prannoy Roy moderates a discussion on Doordarshan on then just held Lok Sabha elections with journalist Vir Sanghvi, Congress leader Anand Sharma and BJP leader Yashwant Sinha.
1995 Assembly elections – Discussion on Doordarshan
Nalini Singh moderates a discussion on Doordarshan with leaders from all political parties ahead of 1995 Assembly elections.
Author: Amol Parth